238th Episode
“Not much time left, I see.”
“…”
Ray remained unmoved and quietly held his position.
The woman, looking at such a composed Ray, narrowed her eyes slightly.
This place was a space granted only to the successor of Harshia, and Ray had undoubtedly inherited a significant portion of its essence.
However, the very foundation and core that made up Ray’s existence were far beyond what the woman had anticipated.
He was certainly not a naturally occurring entity. Nor was he an artificially created one.
If anything, he could be described as something akin to an Apostle.
The woman’s pupils glimmered faintly.
“So… you dare.”
A silver light surged across the darkened earth.
The woman was calm, yet her anger was evident.
“You have been entrusted with the legacy of Harshia.”
Boom!!
The landscape filling Ray’s vision distorted like a crumpled sheet of paper.
In the rippling space, Ray felt a sense of unease.
Had he resisted the boundary from the beginning, it might have been different, but with his mind already completely infiltrated by the barrier, Ray had no means to resist the woman within it.
As Ray maintained forced composure and silence, the distorted scenery gradually returned to its original form.
When Ray redirected his gaze forward, the woman was still calmly seated on her throne.
“It seems you were in quite a hurry.”
She must have faced an immense threat.
That’s why she likely bestowed the legacy of Harshia upon this specially miraculous entity.
Even so…
“You are strange. Very strange indeed.”
The woman was certain that some unforeseen variable influenced the creation of Ray—an occurrence even transcendent beings couldn’t predict.
Without such assumptions, it would be impossible for something similar to an autonomous Apostle to exist.
“To you…”
The woman reviewed the information relayed through the legacies she had left behind in the world.
Reflecting on Ray’s journey, she declared:
“You have no leash. You could have chosen differently.”
Although Ray didn’t fully understand the meaning behind her words, he agreed with the notion that he could have made other choices.
There were countless options available to him when he fell into this world alone, without any proper guidance.
But… in the end, Ray accepted the cost of erasing his entire life to stand here now.
Thus, despite her reluctance, the woman saw the silhouette of someone else in Ray.
“Not much… time left for you either.”
“…”
Ray detected a faint emotion in the woman’s expressionless face but couldn’t identify it precisely.
After pondering, Ray decided to respond to her statement.
“Yes, not much time is left.”
“You’re afraid.”
“I’m not afraid of death.”
“Nonsense.”
The woman mocked Ray with an icy tone.
“Your eyes are filled with regret.”
“…”
Ray didn’t want to prolong this conversation.
Instead of answering, he shrugged.
But the woman seemed pleased by Ray’s discomfort and probed further.
“Answer me. Are you afraid of death?”
“…”
“Did you despair while dreaming of miracles? Did you secretly sketch an unreachable future, only to wake up and dwell on your regrets alone?”
“…”
Ray’s brow furrowed deeply.
Having never appealed to anyone and buried these raw desires and emotions deep inside, Ray found it unpleasant to have them so openly exposed.
Yes, Ray dreamed of miracles and hoped for them.
While pretending to be cold and rational, he sometimes tossed and turned in bed, envisioning a warm future that might arrive miraculously.
The woman exposed and dismissed this pitiful and private hope of Ray’s.
“An unattainable desire.”
She asserted confidently.
“You are a stain on this world, an impurity that corrupts purity.”
“…”
“You’re like a pathogen used out of necessity due to urgent circumstances, but ultimately destined for removal. That’s what you are.”
“…”
“All that has been given to you will eventually lead to your destruction. Designed from the start to collapse once your purpose is fulfilled—didn’t you realize this?”
“…”
“Abandon hope. It will never grant you a miracle. In the end, you’ll only meet frustration and cries of despair.”
“…So what.”
Ray’s voice remained calm and steady.
Despite the woman’s harsh criticism, there was no trace of anger, passion, or hostility in Ray’s tone.
Ray had long ago dimly understood.
He knew he was akin to a puppet who would be discarded after fulfilling his role, a puppet to whom miracles wouldn’t be allocated.
Yet, Ray chose not to care.
If he could keep his childhood vows and protect the futures of those dear to him, that would suffice.
“So, what exactly do you wish to say?”
“…”
The woman silently observed Ray for a moment before rising from her throne.
Walking step by step toward Ray across the ground flooded with black liquid, her long golden hair trailing behind her.
“Numerous beings with fates similar to yours existed in the past.”
“…”
“Their terrible endings you too will repeat…”
“I’m not interested in the past.”
Ray interrupted her forcibly.
“I will walk the path I choose and do what I can. Everything else is secondary.”
“…”
The woman’s eyes flickered gently.
Ray belatedly regretted not appeasing her.
Whether the woman was an artificial intelligence created by Resina or a lingering fragment of her consciousness, her superiority within this ‘illusion’ was absolute.
There was no need to provoke her unnecessarily.
But Ray didn’t want to hear the truth she spoke.
At this point, listening would only stir up meaningless anguish, keeping him restless at night.
Thus, Ray cut her off and feigned strength, tightening his throat.
The woman sneered.
“How sentimental.”
“…”
“Sentimental enough to make you recall him.”
The woman turned her back.
Simultaneously, the black rain falling from the sky suddenly stopped.
As the woman walked back to her throne, the suspended raindrops began flowing backward into the sky.
In this wondrous scene possible only within an illusion,
the woman announced with a sorrowful voice:
“If you’re so confident… experience your own ending firsthand.”
Time rewinds.
The black rain reverses its flow, and the cracked earth and sky mend themselves.
The dark fluid flowing across the land seeps back into the corpses of horrifying entities, reviving them.
Standing amidst hell, Ray looked down at his hands.
In each hand, a sword appeared.
The shape of the sword in his right hand was familiar—it was Moros.
Staring blankly at Moros, Ray glanced down at his body.
Blood overflowed from the gaping hole in his chest.
It soaked the ground beneath him, and an unstoppable fear of death filled the void in his heart.
With tears streaming down his face—a mixture of horrific regret and despair—Ray lifted his head.
Harshia.
The final battlefield where he stood stretched before his eyes.
Lifting his swords like the one who came before, Ray stepped forward onto the darkened earth alone.
“No matter how much of my remaining life I pour in… I won’t be able to catch up to even half of what you achieved.”
Recalling the scars he first saw when stepping into this illusion,
the countless marks etched into the ground, the sky, and the corpses, Ray mulled over them.
He knew he couldn’t reach that level.
Still, Ray began moving forward with his swords drawn.
It was Ray’s resolution…
and also his way of paying tribute, albeit late, to the one he admired.
*
The simulation device in the underground plaza of Izhise was designed with minimal safety guarantees.
Over the past few centuries, thousands of individuals had experienced various battlefields within the illusions provided by this device. While some suffered from aftereffects, no one lost their life.
Thanks to the continuous research and experimentation conducted by skilled mages even after Resina’s passing, the frequency and severity of aftereffects had significantly decreased.
Nowadays, even severe aftereffects usually amounted to feeling dizzy for a day or two.
Thus, the mages waiting in the underground plaza were relaxed, idly spending their time.
However, about five minutes after Ray started the simulation,
an unexpected issue arose in the supposedly safe device.
Ping! Bang!
“What’s going on??”
“Overload? Why now?”
“Reduce the output supplied to the boundary and prepare for shutdown!”
Though alarmed, the mages remained optimistic.
Even if unforeseen problems occurred, they could safely terminate the simulation by sequentially cutting off the magical power supplied to the device’s boundaries.
They believed the problem could be resolved without needing to resort to extreme measures.
Nevertheless, despite their efforts, the simulation device continued to consume mana beyond its set limits, rapidly overheating.
As the situation didn’t quickly stabilize, the mages finally attempted to initiate a shutdown.
However, the simulation device ignored their control.
Even after physically disconnecting the main power source, the device continued to draw mana from auxiliary sources, reinforcing the boundary interfering with Ray’s mind.
Confused and frantic, the mages moved hastily, alarming the students observing the scene.
Just as the instructors decided to evacuate the students,
another change occurred at the center of the boundary.
Crack!
The tranquil Ray, who was supposed to remain seated like someone asleep, suddenly exuded a chilling, alien coldness.
Reacting instinctively, the instructors drew their weapons.
Ray remained seated with his eyes closed at the center of the boundary, but the flow of mana surrounding him violently fluctuated.
Neither the mages nor the knights knew how to respond to this unprecedented situation, glancing nervously at each other.
At that moment,
Ray’s grip tightened, and mana began to gather around him, forming shapes.
Creak-!
“Damn,” Nelson muttered involuntarily.
The mana coalescing in midair intertwined, repelled, and emitted flashes of light.
Eventually, two Sword Energy constructs materialized beside Ray, unsupported by any medium.
Witnessing the resonating swords distorting space, Nelson gritted his teeth.
Encounter (3)
